


Sour Plum Onigiri

by Flower_Dragons



Category: Natsume Yuujinchou | Natsume's Book of Friends, xxxHoLic
Genre: Ayakashi, Gen, Yôkai, sakura trees
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-02
Updated: 2021-01-02
Packaged: 2021-03-12 04:09:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28504254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Flower_Dragons/pseuds/Flower_Dragons
Summary: Kaname followed his father on a business trip to a certain temple in Tokyo and meets Shizuka.
Relationships: Tanuma Kaname & Doumeki Shizuka
Kudos: 11





	Sour Plum Onigiri

The creatures at times known as yokai or ayakashi lived among people, unseen. Sometimes as he walked through a crowd, he would spot one weaving through the people, on their way to their destination like any other person.

He never bothered them and they never bothered him. But that changed when his mother died.

Being near yokai, made his head hurt. Even his love of watching yokai became something that brought him pain instead of joy. And occasionally, a yokai that noticed him looking at them would chase after him despite the fact that they would have ignored him in the past.

In his darker moments, he wondered if the cloud of grief and depression that engulfed his family somehow made him appealing to the supernatural beings.

However, his life had truly turned upside down when his father brought him to Tokyo on a business trip. They stayed at the temple where his father was meeting with his colleagues.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for letting us stay with your family. This is my son, Kaname.” Kaname bowed when introduced to the host by his father.

“I have recently lost my wife and it was not appropriate to leave Kaname home alone. So, I am grateful that you are so accommodating.”

The man that greeted them at the entrance of the temple had a gentle smile. He looked like a man that did not smile much. But the man who was holding a broom, dressed in a simple brown kimono felt warm to Kaname.

“I have heard a lot about you, Kaname-san. If you are interested in seeing them, the sakura trees are blooming at the moment.” Kaname blinked several times before slowly nodding.

The man brought them to the guest room. While his father decided to take a rest, Kaname wanted to see the sakura trees so the man guided him there.

Sakura trees lined the path, making it seemed like a river of pink petals. The man led him to a bench and said, “Take your time, I will bring some tea for you.”

Kaname closed his eyes and took a deep breath. As expected of a temple, the air here was clean and pure. The people that maintained this temple must be very strong.

He spent minutes like this, just breathing in and out. Opening his eyes only when the man came back with tea and snacks. He nodded his thanks to the man and his eyes wandered towards the sakura trees.

He traced the tree up from their woody trunk to the soft pink flowers to the lady that was lingering at the top of the tree. And for the first time in a while, looking at a yokai did not hurt his head.

“The sakura lady enjoys sour plum onigiri. You can offer them to her if you like.” The man suddenly said, making Kaname jump. The man had been so silent that Kaname had forgotten that he was still there.

Kaname looked down at the plate of onigiri between the two of them before looking up at the man. “You can see them too?”

“Sometimes.” The man looked sad.

Kaname nodded and took the plate of onigiri. He stood under the tree of the sakura lady. “Nee, Onee-san. Your tree is very beautiful. Do you want some sour plum onigiri?”

He offered up the plate, holding it stretched as high up at Kaname could get it. And an onigiri floated up to the lady.

Kaname smiled and turned around to walk back to the bench. But a cutting of a sakura tree softly landed on his head before he could take a step. A soft voice said, “Thank you.”

Kaname took the cutting into his hands with wide eyes.

“It seems to be a thank you gift for the onigiri. If you do it properly, you can grow a tree from that cutting.” The man said.

“It’s the first time I got something from an ayakashi.” Kaname said, still in a state of utter surprise.

“Well, the ayakashi that lives within the temple’s premise are not malevolent towards human so it is okay to accept gifts in exchange for something. But you have to be careful when you are outside.” The man bended down to look at Kaname in the eyes and spoke.

“You have to remember this. Everything has an equivalent price, nothing is free. So, you have to be very careful when accepting gifts.”

Kaname stared at the man for a while. He nodded and said, “I understand.”

“Okay, that’s good. Come, let’s go back inside. It is almost time for dinner.” Kaname reached out to hold the man’s hand.

The man’s hand was slightly rough for work. The wooden ring that the man had on his pinkie finger was smooth against his hand. This was a warm and kind man.

“Onii-san, what is your name?”

“Doumeki. Doumeki Shizuka.”

**Author's Note:**

> I know that Doumeki is wildly out of character but let's pretend that he had mellowed out with age and that he has a soft spot for kids okay.
> 
> I have heard that children can see yokai/ayakashi when they are younger because they are pure at that age. So, I was thinking maybe when Tanuma was younger, he could actually see yokai/ayakashi. But as he got older, he was losing that ability.   
> Then, somehow that became a crossover with xxxholic.   
> And I was thinking maybe Tanuma was only able to see shadows of yokai/ayakashi because of a wish/gift that has too high of a price and he paid it with his ability to see them.   
> Well, this was a plot bunny that attacked me, demanding to be written. I hope you have enjoyed it:)


End file.
